Solano County

Solano County sits at a gross rent-to-price ratio of 4.93%, which translates directly into the 3.2% cap rate the model produces at a $577,138 median purchase price and $2,369 median monthly rent. That cap rate sits well below the threshold most cash-flow investors require to cover financing costs, and the fully loaded numbers confirm it: at 6.85% on an 80% LTV mortgage, the estimated monthly cash flow is negative $1,485, producing a cash-on-cash return of negative 13.42%. Home prices are also moving in the wrong direction year-over-year, down 2.93%, so the market is not currently compensating for that cash-flow drag with appreciation. Solano scores 43 overall out of 100, ranking in the 10th percentile nationally and 25th out of 58 California counties, which places it squarely in the lower tier of investment markets, not a bottom-of-barrel outlier but not a market you underwrite on hope either.

The negative cash-flow profile rules out the conventional buy-and-hold cash-flow buyer at current rates and pricing unless they bring a materially larger down payment to reduce debt service. The appreciation score of 35 means the data does not support parking capital here for price growth either. The investor most likely to find opportunity is a value-add operator who can force equity and push rents above the county median, or a buyer who identifies individual assets priced enough below median to change the unit economics meaningfully. The stability score of 50 suggests the market is not particularly volatile, which could appeal to a capital-preservation buyer willing to accept modest total returns. But at negative 13.42% cash-on-cash with rates at 6.85%, that stability premium is expensive.

The taxInsurance data puts monthly property tax and insurance at $433 combined, using a 0.73% state-average effective tax rate alongside a 0.17% insurance rate. The tax flag is "normal" for California, which is notable context: Proposition 13 tends to keep assessed value growth limited for long-term owners, but buyers at today's prices reset to current market value. At the blended $433 monthly carry, tax and insurance represent a real but not outsized line item. That said, the 0.73% rate is a state-average estimate from Tax Foundation 2024 data, and actual Solano County or township-level rates may differ, so underwrite with your specific parcel's assessed value and the applicable local rate before finalizing numbers.

The affordability index of 41 and median household income of $97,037 matter for rental demand context. Renters in this county are not especially flush relative to market rents of $2,369, and the affordability squeeze that keeps would-be buyers renting is the same squeeze that limits how aggressively landlords can push rents. Population of roughly 451,000 gives the county a real renter pool, but the 2.93% price decline suggests that pool has not been sufficient to hold asset values.

The comparison to neighboring counties sharpens the investment case against Solano rather than for it. San Joaquin County prices at $523,017 median with a rent-to-price ratio of 5.41%, versus Solano's 4.93%, at a nearly identical overall score of 43. San Bernardino County offers a 5.41% rent-to-price ratio at $541,638, again with the same overall score. Riverside County prices at $598,126 with a 5.12% ratio and scores 42. In all three cases, the investor gets better or comparable rent yields at equal or lower prices than Solano, with overall scores that are essentially the same. Placer County at $670,919 and a 4.64% rent-to-price ratio is worse on yield and more expensive, though it scores 43. The only scenario where Solano wins the allocation decision over San Joaquin or San Bernardino is if a specific asset, location within the county, or value-add angle produces unit economics the county median cannot capture. On a straight median-to-median comparison, both San Joaquin and San Bernardino deliver meaningfully better rent yields at lower entry prices with equivalent market scores, making them the stronger default choice for an investor running a California buy-and-hold screen at this moment.